Best efforts

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For pompouser types, “best endeavours” Rhodia International Holdings Ltd v Huntsmann International [2007] EWHC 292 (Comm) held that “reasonable endeavours” requires the person on the Clapham omnibus only endeavour down a single avenue of reasonableness. That having resulted in a dead end, there is no further cause to wander up and down thoroughfares, however reasonable they may in the abstract be, to discharge ones obligation.

A “best endeavours” obligation requires the bus to go down every one of those avenues, and exhaust the lot of them. “All reasonable endeavours” on this scheme, is the same as “best endeavours”. It requires money down in the pursuit of real and active, reasonable, effort.

See also

• Best reasonable efforts
• Worst reasonable efforts